U
by cyko1003
Summary: [DannyLindsay] A conversation with Flack makes Danny think things over. OneShot.


**ANs:** Thanks to **Boleyn** for doing a last-minute beta on this, as always. You rock. :)  
**Rated T** for language.  
**Disclaimers:** The usual. Don't own, just borrowing.

**U**

_He smiled and placed a light kiss on her forehead. _

"_For the last year I've been tumbling, unable to find steady ground on which to stand – you did that to me. You came into my life, turned my world upside down, changed everything I've ever known." He leaned in, his lips only an inch from hers. "And I wouldn't have it any other way." His lips met hers, and with his confession, his feet found their place beneath him, beside her. With her. _

_She smiled against his kiss. "You have no idea." _

_Pulling him in, she shut her apartment door behind them._

-+-

Danny slumped down in the booth and took a large swig of his beer. He had a million thoughts running around his mind, driving him absolutely mad, the effect they were having on him had started to become obvious. Flack sat across the booth, trying to get him to talk. Danny just avoided it, dodging his questions and refusing to make eye contact.

"Danny, you're going to drive yourself nuts if you keep this up."

Silence. Just another sip of his beer. _Why did I agree to come here? I know I__'m going nuts – look at her, can you blame me? _He bore his eyes into the table, attempting to get lost in another gulp.

"Flack, what do you want me to tell you? I have no idea what's going on."

Flack shook his head – Danny could be one stubborn ass.

-+-

_He had to remind himself that this was actually happening, that it wasn't a dream, that it wasn't the alcohol making him hallucinate. This was for real. _

_His hands tangled themselves in her hair, pulling lightly on it, the hunger and fire burning within him finally on its way to being satisfied. The taste of her lips intoxicated him, the feel of her hands running about his body set alight senses he didn't know existed. Her body's reactions to his touch aroused him, scared him, left him begging for more. _

_Slowly they broke apart, their breaths hot against each other's faces. Danny struggled to control his breathing, among other things. Lindsay pulled back, searching for something in his eyes. _

"_What is it?" he breathed._

"_Just wondering what finally made you come around," she said slowly, running a hand idly through his hair. _

_He smiled and placed a light kiss on her forehead. _

-+-

Flack huffed, frustrated beyond belief. "Danny, you know perfectly well what's going on, the problem is that you'll do nothing to face it! It's almost as if you don't want to believe it's happening."

Danny grunted. Damn Flack for being right – he hated that about him. There was no getting anything past Flack – he could read Danny like a book. Not even his own mother could pin him the way Flack could. Another swig, only to have the mug torn from his grasp.

"Danny stop being a pissass, and listen to me. How long do you plan to put yourself through absolute misery? When are you going to realize that you're taking a bigger risk by sitting here and wallowing, doing absolutely nothing, instead of strapping on a pair and doing something about it!"

Damn you, Flack.

-+-

_And the world stood still. _

"_Danny, what are you doing here?" _

_She looked so cute in her loungewear, her hair down in a mess of curls, her makeup still on though slightly faded from a long day in the field. It hardly mattered; she was beautiful, gorgeous, stunning. There weren't enough words to describe her. He could only stare, taking her in, his lips and fingertips tingling with anticipation of what he had waited way too long to do. _

"_Danny, are you alright?"_

_It was now or never. He meaningfully, purposely, boldly, took a large step towards her, one hand cupping the back of her head, the other slipping around her waist and pulling her towards him, his lips instinctively finding hers. _

_Electricity exploded behind his eyes, through his lips, beneath his feet. God, she was fantastic, she had this way about her, this grip on his senses, on his reason, that he couldn't even begin to understand or explain. In an effort to maintain control over his last ounce of sanity, he broke the contact, not daring to chance eye contact with her. _

_But before he could even begin to explain himself, she grabbed his shirt and yanked his lips back down onto hers, intensifying what he had originally done to her. _

_He had to remind himself that this was actually happening, that it wasn't a dream, that it wasn't the alcohol making him hallucinate. This was for real. _

-+-

"Give me my beer back," Danny demanded.

"You're a real piece of work, you know that Messer?" Flack shoved the mug back at him, spilling a bit on the table. Danny grabbed it and downed some more. "You're a real piece of work."

"I'm just a friend to her, nothing more," he said. It was the same song he'd been singing for months. "Country girls like her don't take up interest in broken-past city boys like me."

Flack took a gulp from his own mug. Now he was getting pissed. "Danny, are you the only one who doesn't see what's there between you two? We all know it, we all talk about it, we're wondering what the hell is wrong with you two and why you won't just give in already. You'd have to be fucking blind not to see that she's mad about you."

Danny looked away, his eyes falling on a curvy woman leaning against the bar. By anyone's standards, she was gorgeous. Long, perfectly-groomed blonde hair draped softly across her perfectly-toned body, her outfit covering just enough to leave any straight man wanting to know what was beneath it. She caught Danny's eye and flashed an equally-perfect smile. But all Danny could return was a half-assed nod of his head.

"Like her?" asked Flack. Jackass.

"She's alright," Danny grunted, staring intently at his beer.

"But?"

Danny shrugged. Before he could think of anything to say, Flack answered his own question for him.

"But she's not Lindsay."

-+-

_The shiny brass numbers stared him in the face. 412. Lindsay's apartment. _

_He lifted his hand up to knock. Put it back down. Lifted it up again. Put it back down. _

_He rubbed his face in frustration, his fear of rejection taking over. What was he going to say? He didn't even have a game plan! What kind of guy shows up at a girl's apartment with no idea what to do if she was there? Was she even home? _

No. More. What. Ifs.

_He lifted up his hand and knocked. _

Oh god, what have I done?

_One second. Two. _She's not home._ Three. _This was a stupid idea. _Four. _I'm so—

Jingle. _Oh. God. _Click. _The door swung open. _

_And the world stood still. _

-+-

What was he supposed to say to that? No, no she wasn't Lindsay. Lindsay was just as stubborn as he was, maybe even more. She was argumentative and sarcastic. She was always teasing him and embarrassing him. She drove him completely nuts… And he was absolutely crazy about her.

"Come on, Danny, let's get some air." Flack stood up, dropping a twenty on the table. Danny shoved his hands in his pockets and walked out of the bar, following Flack's right turn.

"Flack, I don't know. Yeah, part of me is just dying to be with her, but what about everything else?" Danny looked up at the night sky. Cloudy. Of course.

-+-

_The door in front of him was that of Lindsay's apartment complex. _

_He stood there, staring at it. Open it. Go in. No, don't. Just go home. No, go in. No, go home. _

_He shut his eyes tightly, mentally cursing the conflicting voices that were destroying any ability he had to think straight. Straightening up, he pushed open the door and started up the stairs. Four flights to go. _

_Two flights up, he stopped dead his tracks. _

What are you, crazy! You expect to just go in there and sweep her off her feet and live happily ever after?

_Questions filled his head. He turned around and walked back down. One step. Two steps._

No, I have to know. I can't keep wondering. I can't stand anymore what-ifs.

_He turned around, determined, and marched up the remaining two flights. His heart beat hard against his ribcage, his breathing quickening as he approached. _

_The shiny brass numbers stared him in the face. 412. Lindsay's apartment. _

-+-

"What about everything else?" asked Flack.

"Everything… work, for one. How successful is a workplace relationship? And what if we end up on opposite shifts? We'll never end up seeing each other. This job is so demanding, why do you think Cindy dumped my sorry ass? And say I do try something, and she shoots me down. What then? How are we supposed to be around each other without everything being fucking awkward?" Danny sighed and clenched his fists, resisting the urge to punch something. Unfortunately, the only option would be to punch Flack, but that probably wouldn't go over too well. "It's just…"

"What, Danny, it's just what? It's just that you've been crazy about her for a year? That you stare at her every chance you get, you light up like a fucking Christmas tree every time Mac assigns you two to the same case?" Flack lowered his voice. "It's that you might just find everything you've ever wanted."

Danny looked at Flack. Flack smiled, pointed behind Danny, and walked away. Danny turned around, and stopped breathing.

_The door in front of him was that of Lindsay's apartment complex._

_----- _

**_AN: _**If you don't get the structure, read it a second time. If you still don't get it, PM me.


End file.
